Bunbury

A couple of months ago I'd booked us a room at a spa/B&B down in the Margaret River wine region for a long weekend Mike had off work. Saturday at last the time came to go - our first overnight trip out of town together since we'd moved here, so really the first thing approaching a honeymoon we've had. I was giddy :-) We were on the road by 8AM but check-in wasn't till 2PM so with time to kill we headed down to Bunbury first. We've got an apartment booked there for four nights at Christmas with the kids when they arrive but we've never actually been there. We were in Bunbury about 10AM, found the apartments (which look really nice) and decided to take a stroll around town. Looks great and I think we can all have a lot of fun down there! Directly across the street is a movie theatre, all along the bay front area where the apartment is located are lovely little cafes, a brewery, and boutiques. A 10 minute walk down the beach is the Dolphin Discovery Centre where dolphins come right up to the shore to interact with people. There are boats moored at a couple of yacht clubs in the bay and you can walk around the point to the beaches on the Indian Ocean in about 10 minutes. There appear to be lots and lots of rock pools that will be really fun to poke around in. (note to kids - bring water shoes). There's a surf club, and a wildlife park, and I think the reptile center Laura is keen to visit is down in the area too. It all looks very promising for Christmas!

Lighthouse at Bunbury - Indian Ocean side

The hand of friendship - a cautionary tale

When we moved here it was a bit of a challenge finding out exactly what to pack to move and where to go for what once we arrived. There just isn't a good company network set up where everyone can share their experience and tips on living in Perth. So I promised Mike that I would try my best to help out the next people moving over. The next couple recently arrived and while they are pretty self sufficient, I did want to make the effort to meet the wife (Joan) and help with their settling in however possible. So last week we took them out to dinner one evening and then my pal Robbie and I invited Joan to join us on an expedition to the Darling Ranges to look at more wild flowers. Joan graciously accepted...but I expect she won't be eager to volunteer to join any of our schemes again! Our plan was to head up to the Darlington area to a park I'd noticed in a prior expedition, wander around a bit, take a few photos, have a nice lunch, and head back to Perth by 2PM. Robbie and Joan arrived at my place around 9:30AM, we loaded up in my car, and off we went. We navigated perfectly to the park about 50 minutes from the house, found our way to a parking lot, and we were off. There were a number of cryptic signs pointing in various directions including two indicating scenic waterfalls in opposite directions. We decided to head for the one 600meters away first. Off we went, following a lovely stream, until the path narrowed and the stream turned to a mere trickle. We hadn't seen any fabulous waterfall after some time so decided to turn around. We headed back and decided to make for the OTHER falls about 1km away. This one, we found. So yay it was all good, most scenic, photos were taken, etc. But on our way back there was a sign for a wild flower trail. Given our mission of seeing flowers, we peeled off and started walking...and walking...and walking. Yes, there were flowers. But it turned out not only was the path poorly marked but it was also 6 km long (nearly 4 miles). And then we got kind of lost too. At one point we finally ran into another person and asked directions. He was no help but did express his concern at our plight and informed us that people DO get lost up there and we just might possibly be doomed. Eventually, approaching 12:30PM we finally stumbled upon that first darn waterfall we'd been aiming for. There were two couples there who we asked for directions - they pointed vaguely but since they both pointed in the same direction, we headed that way. 20 minutes later we finally spotted something we recognized and managed to make it to the car, panting, thirsty, hungry, and somewhat befuddled. We made it to Darlington Estates vineyards after 1:30 for lunch and ordered a full round of restorative liquid (sparkling wine). Even Robbie drank a glass and I've never seen her drink wine. Fortunately lunch was excellent, there was wine to taste, and the staff were super nice and friendly. We didn't get Joan back home till after 4PM. She was polite about the whole thing but I could imagine the conversation at home that evening. "You know what those damn women made me do? We walked for hours, no water, no bathrooms, no food. I will NEVER go anywhere with them again!" So next time some well meaning people invite you along for an 'adventure', think long and hard. You may be in for way more than you bargained for. We did get some photos:

So fun :-)

We went with friends down to Fremantle for dinner tonight. Ate at one of the local seafood joints and I know we'll be taking the kids there to visit when they arrive in Dec. One of the aquariums in the restaurant had the biggest cuttlefish I've ever seen alive. S/he was gorgeous and I was smitten. We all happily munched on fresh caught fish of one sort or another, but the highlight of the evening was the all male young Australian chorus. When we arrived they were all (12 or so) sitting at a table and suddenly broke into song - the national anthem I believe. It was lovely and everyone was looking around in surprise. Then they finished and ate their dinner. But later, after they'd eaten, they all got up at the front of the restaurant and sang two more songs for the patrons. Camptown Ladies, and Lollipop (Lollipop, lollipop, ooo lala lollipop). In three part harmony. It was hilarious and fabulous all at the same time. They were great, and so freaking cute in their matching shirts and jumpers. If I'd been 17 years old I would have been an instant groupie. There was a darling red head. Sigh. Kept wishing Marlee and Laura had been there to enjoy it with us :-) Off with a couple of girlfriends to the hills outside Perth again in the morning, and then Saturday Mike and I are off down south to Yallingup and Margaret River to enjoy the beaches, trees, wineries, venison farm, and other delights of the area. Its a three day weekend and Mike's ready for a break from work and I'm ready to get out of town. Can't wait!

We are watching Monday Night Football

It came on at 8AM Tuesday our time so we recorded it this morning. And I, like a good sports fan, did not peek at the score so I could enjoy it with my dearly beloved this evening in a show of sports fan solidarity. He apparently did peek but is humoring me by sitting here fast-forwarding through the commercials for me while I surf the internet. He's a good guy :-) We enjoyed a lovely salad Nicoise this evening - I'd been craving one ever since my niece posted a recipe a few weeks ago. I varied the recipe according to what I could find so we had the potatoes, grape tomatoes, green beans, capers, red onion, and egg that she suggested but I also used sliced green olives, kidney beans, and a grated carrot. By the time I put it all together there was no room for the feta, artichoke hearts, or the avocado I'd kind of been craving all day. So we have spare goodies for later in the week. Spent today wandering the mall shopping for a hat and dress for the Melbourne Cup race on Nov 3. I'm committed to participate in what seems to be an alcohol soaked fashion show and gambling opportunity with a group of women who have been celebrating race day in style together for years. I'm slightly nervous about the whole thing...there is a Hummer-zine involved. And coordinating outfits and hats. Unlimited champagne. And stories of impropriety in years gone by. Including photos in the local paper. I will hide behind one of the taller ladies if I see so much as a glimmer of a camera anywhere near me. I mean it. Update: The dresses are purchased. Robbie and I are wearing identical lime green dresses with coordinating hot pink fascinators. We look like flappers and the ladies in the store, unprompted, assured us that we'll make the paper.

Many more wildflower photos

Finally had a pretty day last week so my pal Robbie and I headed up to Kings Park to enjoy the sunshine and flowers. As a result, here are yet more photos. I'm also all excited because I met a genuine horticulturist today and her specialty is Australian wild flowers. I plan to stalk her and make her go on a road trip with me to identify all the little beauties. I want Latin names too. She'd better know her stuff. I'm just saying. To the photos!

This whole To-mah-to thing...

When the word came out of my mouth unconsciously, I was mildly horrified. I know that I'm picking up little snippets of Aussie speak, and I'm such an accidental mimic I'm sure by the time I get back to the states, I'll just sound silly and pretentious. Let me say in advance...it is not on purpose! It's just easier to adapt rather than have people give you that blank stare. Tomato vs. tomahto...ladies room vs. toilet...tomahto sauce vs. ketchup....hotel vs. bar...the list goes on. I have an Aussie slang dictionary book marked on my internets because there are just that many variations. I am starting to call hoodlums bogans and hoons even. A mugging is a bashing. A bell pepper is a capsicum. Fries are chips. Cookies are biscuits. A rib eye is a scotch fillet (pronounced fill-it). And mayo is some unmentionable substance that's not quite Miracle Whip but certainly not mayo. Unless you spring for the imported Hellmans, which I do. And....a burger is anything that comes between two halves of a bun. Which brings us back to tomahto. I was ordering a bacon burger, without tomahto, and forgot that vital bit of burger detail. So my order arrived and rather than being the tasty bacon burger I'd imagined with grilled onions and lettuce and an all meat patty with some crispy bacon, it was a bunch of moderately limp Aussie bacon (like Canadian bacon but with fat) with a fried egg and lettuce. Turns out of all the 5-6 'burgers' listed on the menu, not one actually contained a patty of ground beef. I was bummed.

Sticker shock

I do most of the shopping so Mike remains blissfully unaware of the rather high (to us) cost of living. He got a brief glimpse today. We decided to have a date Sunday night and chose a movie and bought tickets on Friday because you need to book in advance to see a movie on the weekend. I suggested we go to the Gold Class movie - a special theater within a theater that seats about 30 people in comfy lounge chairs and offers adult beverages, an 18 and over age limit, and tasty meal service right at your seat. The price for two tickets is over $70AU (about $60US). Mike asked, quite rightly, if that includes a bottle of champagne and an all you can eat buffet. No darling, that is for the seat and the movie. Snack food items are an additional charge. He is skeptical that there is any movie seat anywhere worth that price unless it comes with a massage and scantily clad hostesses.

You know how you sign up for AA or whatever just in case?

Just in case just happened. Went out to jump in the car to go buy a recharge for my cell phone and my car is dead. As in even the keyless entry buttons won't do anything. Batteries are like that. One minute happily shooting electricity, next minute its all over but the trip to the hazardous waste facility. BUT! I was brilliant and signed up for RAC - Royal Auto Club. Doesn't everything just sound way cooler if it has "Royal" as part of it's name? I think so. I was seduced by the name and the shiny yellow store front at the mall several months ago. So I whizzed back upstairs, rang them up, and voila! Someone will be around to make it all better within 60 minutes. I'm feeling all smart and proactive and smug about my purchase. Edited to add: The darling RAC employee who fixed my battery can come back and fix anything else he wants at any time. It was almost like getting a bonus for my savvy investment!

Tea

We're still enduring winter and overcast gloom. We've got one pretty day on tap today and I'm heading to Kings Park to check out the flowers and take a long walk, but the gloom is predicted to descend again tomorrow and remain for another week. I am not cut out for this! One bright spot is tea. I've been sipping my two daily cuppas for years now. I'm a slave to habit - Earl Grey, steeped 4 minutes, one pack of Splenda, a dash of milk. Mike has learned how to make it and many mornings the tea fairy arrives at my bedside bearing hot restorative liquids....ahhh. But I'm branching out because the British influence means that in adddition to their excellent coffee, tea is also a highly prized beverage. There is a tea shop at our local mall that has about a gazillion varieties of loose leaf tea. No really. A gazillion. They'll make up any loose leaf mixture that you can imagine. It's an entire wall of drawers labeled with intriguing names like Buddhas Tears, Gunpowder Green, Monk Pear. You want caffeine, herbal, tisane, fruit tea? They've got it. My favorite is Liquorish Legs - digestive herbs with lumps of liquorish bark that give it a lovely subtle sweet flavour. I drink it plain as the sweetness is enough without any additions. It makes me happy. I'm also drinking a variety of lemon, chai, mint, chamomile, Darjeeling and whatever else catches my fancy as I wander through. It may take the duration of our stay to sample all the offerings: T2 Website

Sometimes technology does NOT make life better

I have been wrestling with technology this week. It's a dull story, but suffice it to say that due to a clerical error ten years ago, I have ended up with two retirement accounts through one of the major plan administrators. The original account was split in two per my divorce and unbeknownst to me at the time, I got both halves because a lawyer did the paperwork wrong. My ex got both halves of a different plan account and in terms of amounts, it was a wash on each side. I tried to fix it years ago to no avail since he was happy with his accounts. So I've been getting dual statements and notifications for ten years. The amounts in the two halves of the account are almost exactly equal but not quite thank goodness, otherwise I'd never have figured out what was going on. One is easy-ish...its under my ss# and name so I changed my address when we moved to Perth and set up online access instead of paper statements. It took a couple of weeks and several calls to get new PIN numbers etc, but it did get done. Except for a typo, but really who cares if it's the Katy or Caty Freeway, right? The second one is a whole different story. For whatever magical reason all these accounts in this plan are tied to a ss# and don't have an actual individual account number. So when they split the one account, half is under my ss# and half is under a MADE UP SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER. All access to these accounts goes through the dreaded voice mail system which requires you to input your social security number. But this is a FAKE ss# so the system knows it's a fake and won't recognize it. Same with online access. The implication of criminal intent when I input the fake ss# is palpable. It's been a comedy trying to get it fixed and I feel sorry for the customer service reps who are being most helpful but can't understand what's going on until I tell them the whole story. Today, in theory, thanks to a helpful rep, I now have a request to change the mailing address on the fake ss# account submitted. I'll wait a week or two for a confirmation letter and then I can call back and request a new PIN number on that account to be mailed to me. Then I wait another week or two and when a new PIN number arrives to the correct mailing address, they say I will be able to access the account (via yet another international call) and THEN I can actually find out balances and maybe possibly if the stars are properly aligned, get online access. Security technology is my nemesis. At this point I'm pretty sure a criminal could find an easier way to access my account than I can. PS: Yes, I do know it's all for my own good blah blah blah.